Reggae is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use the word "reggae", effectively naming the genre and introducing it to a global audience. While sometimes used in a broad sense to refer to most types of popular Jamaican dance music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that was strongly influenced by traditional mento as well as American jazz and rhythm and blues, and evolved out of the earlier genres ska and rocksteady. Reggae usually relates news, social gossip, and political commentary. It is instantly recognizable from the counterpoint between the bass and drum downbeat and the offbeat rhythm section. The immediate origins of reggae were in ska and rocksteady; from the latter, reggae took over the use of the bass as a percussion instrument.
The music of Jamaica includes Jamaican folk music and many popular genres, such as mento, ska, rocksteady, reggae, dub music, dancehall, reggae fusion and related styles.
James Chambers OM, known professionally as Jimmy Cliff, is a Jamaican ska, rocksteady, reggae and soul musician, multi-instrumentalist, singer, and actor. He is the only living reggae musician to hold the Order of Merit, the highest honour that can be granted by the Jamaican government for achievements in the arts and sciences.
Dub is a musical style that grew out of reggae in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and is commonly considered a subgenre of it as well as a genre of electronic music, though it has developed to extend beyond the scope of reggae. In the context of reggae, the style consists predominantly of partly or completely instrumental remixes of existing recordings and is achieved by significantly manipulating and reshaping the recordings, usually through the removal of some or all of the vocals, emphasis of the rhythm section, the application of studio effects such as echo and reverb, and the occasional dubbing of vocal or instrumental snippets from the original version or other works.
Rocksteady is a music genre that originated in Jamaica around 1966. A successor of ska and a precursor to reggae, rocksteady was the dominant style of music in Jamaica for nearly two years, performed by many of the artists who helped establish reggae, including harmony groups such as the Techniques, the Paragons, the Heptones and the Gaylads; soulful singers such as Alton Ellis, Delroy Wilson, Bob Andy, Ken Boothe and Phyllis Dillon; musicians such as Jackie Mittoo, Lynn Taitt and Tommy McCook. The term rocksteady comes from a popular (slower) dance style mentioned in the Alton Ellis song "Rocksteady", that matched the new sound. Some rocksteady songs became hits outside Jamaica, as with ska, helping to secure the international base reggae music has today.
Ini Kamoze is a Jamaican reggae artist who began his career in the early 1980s and rose to prominence in 1994 with the signature song "Here Comes the Hotstepper". The single topped the US Billboard Hot 100 as well as record charts in Denmark and New Zealand, reaching number four on the UK Singles Chart.
Jamaican culture consists of the religion, norms, values, and lifestyle that define the people of Jamaica. The culture is mixed, with an ethnically diverse society, stemming from a history of inhabitants beginning with the original inhabitants of Jamaica [the tainos] The Spaniards originally brought slavery to Jamaica. Then they were overthrown by the English. Jamaica later gained emancipation on 1 August 1838, and independence from the British on 6 August 1962. Black slaves became the dominant cultural force as they suffered and resisted the harsh conditions of forced labour. After the abolition of slavery, Chinese and Indian migrants were transported to the island as indentured workers, bringing with them ideas from their country.
Red Stripe is a 4.7% ABV pale lager brewed by Desnoes & Geddes in Jamaica. It was first introduced in 1928 from a recipe developed by Paul H. Geddes and Bill Martindale. It is also brewed in the Netherlands by Heineken. In 1993, Guinness Brewing Worldwide, now Diageo, acquired a controlling interest in Desnoes & Geddes, and took over international distribution in many markets. In 2015, Heineken acquired Diageo's stake and stated it would launch an offer for the shares it did not own.
Edgardo Armando Franco, better known as El General, is a Panamanian former reggae artist considered by some to be one of the fathers of "Reggae Español". During the early 1990s, he was one of the artists who initiated the Spanish-language dancehall variety of reggae music. Early examples of this were the international and somewhat mainstream songs, "Te Ves Buena" and "Tu Pum Pum". “Tu Pum Pum emerged after a friend of El General invited him to collaborate with a Jamaican producer that was searching for a “different sound in Panama." Both songs, performed in Spanish deejaying style, were very successful in North America. After getting his foot in the door of the commercial market, many other Spanish-language dancehall reggae artists became famous in the mainstream as well. He has a unique, easy to listen to style of dance music and has produced many well-known songs all over Latin America. This style is called reggae en Español, because he makes dancehall reggae music with Spanish-language lyrics and is an early precursor to Regé en español. El General retired in 2004 and became a Jehovah's Witness.
Robert Nesta Marley was a Jamaican singer, musician, and songwriter. Considered one of the pioneers of reggae, his musical career was marked by fusing elements of reggae, ska, and rocksteady, as well as his distinctive vocal and songwriting style. Marley's contributions to music increased the visibility of Jamaican music worldwide, and made him a global figure in popular culture to this day. Over the course of his career, Marley became known as a Rastafari icon, and he infused his music with a sense of spirituality. He is also considered a global symbol of Jamaican music and culture and identity, and was controversial in his outspoken support for democratic social reforms. In 1976, Marley survived an assassination attempt in his home, which was thought to be politically motivated. He also supported legalization of marijuana, and advocated for Pan-Africanism.
Clifford Smith, better known as Mr. Vegas, is a Jamaican dancehall musician.
Esther Renay Dean is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Dean has also written songs for many artists, with numerous Top 10 hits, including No. 1 hits for Rihanna and Katy Perry, earning the name "The Song Factory". At the 54th Annual Grammy Awards, Dean was nominated for Album of the Year as a producer on Rihanna's album Loud. Outside of music, she voiced two of the characters in the fourth film in the Ice Age franchise, Ice Age: Continental Drift, and also wrote a song for the movie, titled "We Are (Family)". Dean made her acting debut in the film Pitch Perfect (2012) as Cynthia-Rose Adams, a role she reprised for the sequels, Pitch Perfect 2 (2015) and Pitch Perfect 3 (2017).
Nasri Tony Atweh, known mononymously as Nasri, is a Canadian singer, songwriter, and record producer. He currently resides in Los Angeles, California, United States. He is the lead vocalist and songwriter for the reggae fusion band, Magic!, a group consisting of fellow Toronto natives, Mark Pellizzer, Alex Tanas, and Ben Spivak. MAGIC!'s single "Rude" became a major international hit single. He is currently managed by Wassim "Sal" Slaiby.
Oje Ken Ollivierre, popularly known as Protoje, is a contemporary reggae singer and songwriter from Jamaica. His mother is Jamaican singer Lorna Bennett, best known for her 1972 rendition of "Breakfast in Bed". His father is a former calypso singer Mike Ollivierre from the island nation of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. He has one daughter with his wife Lindsay.
Christina Grand was born February 17 in New Jersey, United States. She started working in the music industry in 1996 by assisting promoters, record labels and club owners with business operations and marketing. The Worldwide Reggae Embassy™: In 2011, she began to diligently produce songs for the organization's clients such as Eldie Anthony, Ma'Niche, Cameal Davis, C-Zer, I-Noble, Tajji, Fyah Stain, and Blakk Sparrow.
Eldie Anthony ; is a Recording Artist, songwriter, and producer stemming from Kingston, Jamaica. Born January 28, 1984 in Kingston, Jamaica), he began singing at a young age yet in 2004 he decided to dedicate his life to a career in music. He began working with various composers and producers.
Omar Samuel Pasley, better known by his stage name OMI, is a Jamaican singer. He is best known for "Cheerleader", a worldwide hit for him in a remixed version by German DJ Felix Jaehn. He is currently signed to Ultra Music, a part of Sony Music, and released his debut album Me 4 U in 2015.
Skip Marley Minto is a Jamaican singer-songwriter. He is the son of Cedella Marley and David Minto, and grandson of Bob Marley. He has received two Grammy Award nominations and an MTV Video Music Award nomination.
Nailah Thorbourne, better known by her stage name Nyla, is a Jamaican singer and songwriter from Kingston, Jamaica. Nyla was a member of the R&B and reggae duo Brick & Lace whose debut album, Love Is Wicked, was released by Geffen and KonLive in 2007 and featured the chart topping single "Love Is Wicked". She is best known for being featured on Major Lazer's "Light It Up". Today she writes and performs as a solo artist and is currently recording and releasing music with some of the biggest chart topping artists and producers.
Stuart Wilson is a Reggae, Jazz and Blues musician from the Cayman Islands. Stuart Wilson's music has been branded as a Reggae Renaissance, which includes elements of Jazz, Classic Rock and Blues.
